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Month: June 2026
PHOTO GALLERY: FCA softball all-star game (72 images)
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GAME STORY: Thunderstorm halts FCA football game with Red team leading
ABILENE — One of God’s own inventions stood in the way of an interesting finale to the Big Country Fellowship of Christian Athletes All-Star Festival on Saturday.
With the Myrle Greathouse All-Star Football Classic providing a competitive Day 3 conclusion to the event, an afternoon thunderstorm moved into the area, bringing lightning with it.
It was at that point that game officials elected to cancel the remainder of the event, rather than subject those in attendance to endless delays and possible safety concerns.
For the record, the Red team was leading 22-14 early in the third quarter when the stoppage occurred. Brownwood’s Judson Coalson had thrown for 122 yards with TD passes to Abilene’s Jeremiah Collins and Jim Ned’s Breck Lawson.
Blue, which had outgained Red 157-146 at that point, was led by Cooper’s Jaden Carillo with 26 yards rushing and one TD to go with four catches for 31 yards.
GAME STORY: First-inning rally, complete-game gem by Larsen lifts Groveton Centerville to 2-0 win over Gordon
ROUND ROCK — A two-out, two-run single by Chris Fry in the top of the first inning proved the difference in the game Saturday as Groveton Centerville edged Gordon 2-0 for the Class 1A state championship at Dell Diamond.
The Bulldogs’ three first-inning hits accounted for more than half their total for the game, but that mini outburst against Longhorns ace Aiden Shank was all the run support necessary for Kolt Larsen, whose complete-game shutout had him holding the MVP trophy after the game.
Fry’s single, the only hit by either team in 17 at-bats with runners in scoring position, forced Gordon to play catch-up the rest of the way. And despite a strong pitching performance of their own from Shank and reliever Stryker Reed, the Longhorns could never close the gap, leaving seven runners on base in the loss.
With the victory, Centerville (24-1) claimed its first state championship in program history, while Gordon (23-5) finished as the state runner-up for the second consecutive year.
GAME STORY: FCA Red and Blue teams exchange lopsided wins on Day 2 (box scores included)
ABILENE — Day 2 of the Big Country Fellowship of Christian Athletes All-Star Festival was a lot more about fellowship than anything else.
With Abilene Christian University hosting the FCA Girls and Boys All-Star Basketball Games at Moody Coliseum on Friday, neither game provided a great deal of drama.
In fact, the Red and Blue teams exchanged a pair of blowouts, with the Red Girls defeating the Blue 72-39 in the opening game of the doubleheader. The Blue Boys returned the favor in the night cap, defeating the Red team 91-54.
As is the custom at the FCA All-Star Festival, both teams joined hands in prayer following each game, and the fact that neither contest was close hardly seemed to matter.
“It was a lot of fun said San Angelo Central boys coach Arsenio Geter, who guided the boys blue team. “Everybody had a smile on their face the whole time. And that’s what we wanted. We wanted everyone to have a chance to play one more game and have fun doing it.”
GAME STORY: Clutch hit eludes Brock as Robinson small-balls way to 3-1 win in Class 4A DII title game
ROUND ROCK — The Brock baseball team outhit Waco Robinson 10-3 on Friday in the Class 4A Division II state championship game, but it wasn’t enough as a scrappy Rockets squad did more to capitalize on its opportunities in a 3-1 win at Dell Diamond.
With lefty starter Cayden Birkes pitching into and out of trouble for six strong innings and his lineup turning three singles, three Brock errors, three walks and a pair of hit batsmen into consistent base traffic, Robinson never trailed, scoring the game’s first run in the bottom of the first before breaking a 1-all tie with a pair of runs in the fifth.
The teams combined to go just 1 for 16 with runners in scoring position, with Cayden Coe’s two-run single in the pivotal fifth inning serving as as the difference both in that statistical category and the game.
Brock, which closed its season at 32-7, falling in the state championship game for the second time in three years, loaded the bases in the top of the seventh. But Robinson reliever Eddie Villarreal got Asher Strait to pop out to end the game, setting off a dogpile near the mound as the Rockets (30-10) claimed their first state title in program history.
FEATURE: Gordon seniors look to add program’s first baseball title to historic list of accomplishments
ROUND ROCK — With what they’ve accomplished across all sports, Gordon’s 2026 seniors have already cemented themselves as one of the most successful graduating classes in the history of the state.
The laundry list of achievements on the boys side, which include three football titles, three track titles, a basketball state tournament appearance and two trips to the championship game in baseball, have seen the Longhorns compete on the biggest stages Texas high school sports have to offer and collect enough hardware to fill several trophy cases along the way.
On Saturday, six members of that class — Brayden Walters, Stryker Reed, Aiden Shank, Asher Salinas, Evan Jackson and Noah Kostiha — will don the black and gold for one final time when Gordon takes on Groveton Centerville for the Class 1A title at 9 a.m. at Dell Diamond. And if things go according to plan, that group will help the Longhorns leave Round Rock with one of the few trophies that alluded them to this point.
GAME STORY: Big Country Christians put on a show in FCA volleyball match
ABILENE — They didn’t have much time to shake off the ring rust, but both teams involved in the Bev Ball All-Star Volleyball Classic at Wylie High School.
Part of the Day 1 lineup of this year’s Big Country Fellowship of Christian Athletes All-Star Festival, the Bev Ball Classic saw the Blue All-Stars rally to top the Red 17-25, 29-27, 15-8 to take this year’s title. This, after splitting a pair of warm-up games with Blue winning 25-20 and Red taking Game 2 25-21.
Wall’s Emery Harper had 10 kills and an ace and Abilene High’s Olivia Weatherford had six kills, three blocks and an ace to lead the Blue team, which rallied from a 6-5 deficit with a 10-2 run to win Game 3.
The Red team was led by Match MVP Aniah Hines, who nearly took over the contest with 17 kills, four blocks and five aces.
“I don’t even have the words,” said Abilene High’s Emily Gravitt, who coached the blue team. “The girls were such a blessing, the atmosphere was such a blessing and the FCA is an incredible organization.”
FEATURE: Brock shortstop, team leader Lightfoot a catalyst for Eagles’ run to state title game
In the biggest game of his high school career — and in the most important moment in Brock High School’s recent baseball history — Canon Lightfoot did … well … what Canon Lightfoot does.
He delivered the goods on time.
Last Saturday, in a win-or-go-home game that served as the climax to the Class 4A Division II state semifinal series, Lightfoot laced the first pitch of the first inning from Frisco Panther Creek starter Cross Rodriguez. The ball went just over Rodriguez’s head, then shot past him, on a line to a spot some 30 feet in front of the Panthers’ center fielder, Graylyn Fry.
A little more than two hours later, Brock was on its way to the state championship game.